Test of Courage
by Midorima Kazunari
Summary: The Point Guard Poker Players help Imayoshi with an assignment instead of playing poker one night and reveal their deepest fears. (This story is part of the Partners' Universe).


A/N: This story falls between chapters ten and eleven of Gentlemen, Place Your Bets and proceeds Sundays with Imayoshi and can be read as part of those stories or not, depending on your disposition. Enjoy

* * *

Imayoshi paid for the four drinks with his Tully's Card. It wasn't so much that he was being generous to his friends, but that he was almost to the next reward level and wanted to tip himself over the edge for his next purchase.

He took the tray of drinks to the table where Mitobe and Kasamatsu were already seated. "Where's Bat?" he asked.

"The last text I got said he'd just got to the station. He should be here any time now," Kasamatsu replied.

"Excellent, I've gotta finish this chapter. I've got a test on the material tomorrow and I've only got three pages left and then I can give ya'll my full attention."

He pulled a softback book, The History of Fear, from his messenger bag and licked his finger before turning to the marked page.

* * *

Takao bounded in the front door fifteen minutes later. "I'm sorry, I'm sorry," he sputtered. "There was some kind of accident on the Metro and it had all the trains running late." He looked around confused. "Where are Pacifist and Chatterbox?"

"Chatterbox is getting a refill and Pacifist is emptyin' his bladder so he can do the same," Imayoshi explained. "I gotcha a cold beverage, so no harm, no foul."

Takao took the empty seat to Imayoshi's left and sat down and inspected the bright green drink in a large parfait glass. On top of the melting foam, dark chocolate shavings finished off the effect. He carefully took a sip, always cautious of what Imayoshi might have planned.

"It's good," he said with a smile and took a longer, less measured draw on the purple straw.

"It's some seasonal thin', so don't get too attached."

"What are you reading?" Takao asked as Mitobe came back to the table with a small cup of yogurt and açaí fruit. "That looks yummy, too. We should come to this place more often."

"I am readin', since you asked, a book for a test tomorrow," he said, turning the cover toward Takao. "We just started studyin' urban legends. It's actually pretty interestin', especially when ya consider how many stories we have around town. I've even gotta visit one for an assignment and write up the experience." He put his bookmark back in the book and pushed the tome across the table to Takao.

"Oh, that's so cool," Takao gushed. He picked up the book and flipped through. "This story is from a park near our house."

"It's not fair. I have to dissect a cat this week in my anatomy class and you get to do fun shit," Kasamatsu complained.

Mitobe's smile faded as a touch of jealousy bit at his heart. He shook it off, hoping that no one had noticed it. _No, I can't be unhappy that my friends have such awesome opportunities._

"How goes the writin', Chatterbox?" Imayoshi had seen that momentary dimness of Mitobe's eyes and recognized it as a twinge of sadness.

 _Good_ , he nodded, knowing he'd been caught. He took up his phone and wrote out a complete answer. [I got a byline in Mainichi Shimbun. It was a small piece on a new jockey, but it ran and that made me very happy.]

"That's so awesome!" Takao celebrated, offering a fist bump. Mitobe smile and completed the gesture.

"Dad sent me the clipping from the paper," Imayoshi told him. "It was nicely done."

[What game are we going to play tonight?] Mitobe sent the text since he was uncomfortable being the center of attention.

"Whose turn was it?" Kasamatsu asked.

They all looked at each other before Imayoshi sighed and pulled out his phone. "Looks like it was me," he sighed. Mitobe could see the phone from where he sat and saw that the memo on the calendar said it was actually Takao's turn. "I've got nothin'," he continued. "I didn't even bring cards."

"Well," Takao began, grinning. "Why don't we go to one of these places and knock out one of your assignments? You can write about how Pacifist pees his pants when he's scared."

"Oh, you little shit," Kasamatsu growled. "You'll be screaming for 'Shin-chan' and begging him to walk you home long before I'll be scared."

"You're on," Takao shouted, getting to his feet.

"Which one are we going to?" Kasamatsu stood as well.

"How about…" Takao paused, looking down at the book. "Yes, the park I mentioned. It's only a few bus stops away."

"If you cry before I get scared," Kasamatsu challenge, "then you have to get me a picture of Midorima's Lucky Item collection."

"I…," Takao stuttered.

"Afraid, Bat?" he asked.

"If you lose," Takao swallowed hard, "then you have to ask a girl out to dinner, a girl I'll pick for you. Deal?" he asked, holding out his hand.

Kasamatsu shook it. "You are so going down." The two of them headed for the door and Mitobe rushed to clean up the mess the four of them had made.

Imayoshi sighed and repacked his messenger bag. "I guess we're goin' ghost huntin' tonight, Chatterbox. I hope you don't mind."

Mitobe shrugged and shook his head, smiling gently. _I've never done this before. Maybe it'll be fun._

"That's the spirit, Chatterbox," he said, then groan as he realized the unintentional pun.

* * *

They took the bus at the station closest to the coffee house. Imayoshi and Kasamatsu took seats facing forward, while Mitobe and Takao sat on the bench that sat off at a right angle.

"Which do you think will lose?" Imayoshi asked Mitobe, nudging the silent man's knee.

 _I'm not getting involved in this_ , he laughed.

"It's not like it's even going to be scary. Who's afraid of ghost stories?" Kasamatsu asked.

"Now, that's an interestin' question," Imayoshi drawled, laying his arm across the seat behind Kasamatsu's back. "What are we all afraid of, really?"

"Like I'd admit anything to you," Kasamatsu dismissed the question.

"I'm not talkin' simple things I could use against ya. For sure, if ya told us ya were terrified of snakes, ya'd find a rubber snake under ya pillow. Maybe not today, maybe not tomorrow, but eventually and when ya'd least expect it," he clapped his hands for emphasis, "I'd get ya." His smile turned up a notch as he spoke, causing the other three to shiver. "I'm talkin' about the big things of the world. Things we can't mess with."

"Like what?" Takao asked. "Give us an example, you go first."

"Alright, I don't mind. The thing I'm most afraid of in this whole world is dyin' alone."

Mitobe's expressive eyebrows rose. _That's bigger than I thought we'd go._

"Well, that's… disappointing," Kasamatsu said. "Everyone dies alone. It's not something you can avoid. Even if two people die in the same instance, only you can experience your death."

"Thanks for ruinin' my illusions, Pacifist. Can't you let me have a little comfort?"

"Okay, yeah, dying alone is scary," Takao said, ignoring Kasamatsu's outburst. "But why do you think that's the worst thing in the whole world?"

Imayoshi sighed, looking out the window of the bus, watching the lights of Tokyo night flash by. "I don't talk about it much, but when I was five, my mother and little sister were in a bad car accident. Ma died in the ambulance on the way ta the hospital. Aya made it ta the hospital before she died. They were surrounded by people, but if you think about it, no one who loved them was there when they left this world."

"That's so sad," Takao lamented.

 _Wait, your mother? The woman who makes me breakfast most mornings and does my laundry is dead? Is she a zombie? You really should have mentioned that beforehand._

"Your mother?" Kasamatsu asked, his voice dripping with sarcasm. "You mean that lovely woman Chatterbox lives with?"

"That's my stepmother; dad remarried about a year later. She is a lovely woman and has never treated me as anythin' but her son. Hell, she's been my mother since I was six. Hiroya was four at the time and he took it even harder than I did. I think that's one of the reasons he's been a shut-in. I don't think he'll ever recovered. She's Kosuke's mother by blood, but he'll always be my good-for-nothin' little brother."

Mitobe reached back and placed his hand lightly on Imayoshi's chest.

"Don't give me too much credit, Chatterbox. I'm not a good person and I know it."

Mitobe shook his head and pushed his hand a little harder against his chest before dropping his hand and the issue altogether.

"Alright, I get the gist," Kasamatsu said, "but that doesn't mean you won't hold what I say against me for years and years, ad nauseam."

"Okay, okay, I don't blame you; I have a truly horrible personality, but I'll promise ya this, I won't tease ya about your fear any more than ya do about mine, on my honor as a Point Guard."

Kasamatsu raised one bushy eyebrow at Takao. "What do you think?"

"I'll take the chance," Takao said.

"Your fear is too easy. Any of us could guess that you're afraid Socialite will leave you," Kasamatsu dismissed.

"What?!" Takao squeaked. "That's not even funny. He and I are in it for the long-run, but thanks so much for putting that gem of a thought in my head, Pacifist." He fingered the blue topaz hanging from a chain around his neck. "No, Shin-chan is the least of my worries."

 _Maybe we should stop this before someone gets hurt._ The look on Mitobe's face was as clear as if he'd said it out loud.

"A friendship is only as strong as its honesty, Chatterbox," Imayoshi said, "But, Bat may surprise us yet."

All eyes turned toward Takao. "Since this is confession time… do any of you know the real reason I live with the Midorima family?"

The three friends shook their heads and waited patiently as Takao looked at his feet. "I've never told this to anyone but Shin-chan." He cleared his throat and wiped the stray tears away from his eyes with the cuff of his hoodie.

Mitobe took Takao's right hand in his left. The Point Guard took another deep breath and squeezed the reassuring hand tightly. "My biggest fear is ending up like my parents. My father… is an abusive alcoholic and my mother… is a selfish bitch who didn't care that he'd beat the shit out of me and my sister when he got drunk. I don't want to be like them."

Mitobe pulled Takao into his arms as the smaller of the two men pulled the hoodie over his face.

"Ya know what, Bat?" Imayoshi said, leaning forward to reach around Mitobe's back and put his hand on Takao's head. "You're already so different from them, ya never need ta worry about that."

"I'm… I'm sorry, Bat," Kasamatsu said, putting his hand on Takao's knee. "I would never have made fun of you and Socialite if I'd known. You two are perfect together and you'll be that way forever."

"Yeah, I guess we all need ta be a little nicer ta Socialite, but I'm not gonna apologize for makin' fun of ya."

"You really are horrible," Takao grumbled, laughing as he pulled away from the embrace. He rubbed away the tears and sat back.

"This is our stop," Kasamatsu said, standing to pull the chord to alert the driver.

* * *

The humid night air hit Mitobe in the face as he stepped down.

"This way," Takao said, his voice resuming some of its normal energy and his step had its usual bounce in it. "Okay, Pacifist, your turn."

Kasamatsu straightened up as they walked. "Well," he said, looking straight ahead. "I guess that's only fair. I'm terrified that one day I'll get hurt like The Professor. I can do everything and prepare for all kinds of things, but he had done the same and it didn't matter when that stupid freak accident happened and there was nothing any of us could do to stop it. His career was over in a split-second. If I can't play basketball, if I couldn't play tomorrow, I'd lose my scholarships, I'd have to drop out of school, I couldn't…" He stopped and threw his hands up in the air. "If I can't go to school, I can't help him play basketball again." As the panic rushed out of his head, swelling in his chest, he put his hands on his head and squatted down in the middle of the sidewalk, people streamed around them. He put the tips of his right fingers on the ground and then stood just as suddenly and began walking again, forcing the others to hurry after him. "So, yeah, that's what I'm afraid of, in a roundabout way."

No one said a word for a few steps, then a text rang on three of their phones. [Anyone whose greatest fear is not being able to help their best friend is a good person.]

"As always, Chatterbox expresses what we all wanted ta say perfectly," Imayoshi said, sighing.

They walked in silence for a few seconds before noticing that Mitobe hadn't started moving when the rest of them had. He'd rested against the railing by the staircase leading up to the bridge that led across the road. He was busy composing a text and in came in small chunks.

[My turn] it said.

[Ever since I was a child and I realized I would never speak again, I've been petrified that I would lose another of my senses.]

"Shit," Kasamatsu whispered. "I hadn't realized you could speak at one point."

"That makes a lot of sense, actually," Imayoshi decided. "When ya know loss ya fear it more, or at least that's one theory in my textbook."

"What caused you to lose your voice?" Takao asked. "Was it that car accident you were in?"

[An infection. I was seven.]

"Ya know we don't have ta do this urban legend hunt thing. I can do this another day if no one's in the mood anymore."

[We've come all this way] Mitobe replied.

"He's right," Takao agreed. "I want to see what happens. No matter what bull Pacifist and I talked earlier, I know I'm safe here with you guys. Let's keep going."

[I love this kinda crap. Haunted houses, scary movies, tests of courage: I may scream silently and cry, but I'll enjoy every minute of it.]

"Only a coward would turn back now," Kasamatsu accused. "And look, the park's right there taunting us. Alright, Bat, read what the book says about this place."

Takao's eyes skimmed the small paragraph. "A schoolboy murdered in 1963 along with his pet dog. Visitors can still hear the crying and barking in the area."

"Well, that was… succinct, I guess," Kasamatsu complained. "I think we should have brought flashlights."

Mitobe tapped the flashlight app on his phone and pointed it at Kasamatsu.

"Duh," the former Kaijō Point Guard groaned.

"Alright, Pacifist and I will go first," Takao decided. "You guys come about five minutes later and we'll meet at the gate on the other side of the park. If you follow the path, you'll come to the playground, and continuing through is the west gate. Let's meet there." He grabbed Kasamatsu's arm and dragged the reluctant man down the pitch-black path barely visible in the halo of the light from their cellphones.

As they disappeared from view, Imayoshi coughed. "Don't tell 'um I said this," Imayoshi warned, "but I hate this stuff."

[I'll protect you] Mitobe's reply came.

"You'd better."

* * *

Imayoshi shuffled into the darkened wooded area, keeping one step behind Mitobe until the taller of the two men stopped dead and turn.

"Just keep goin', I'll be fine as long as I can see ya in front of me, Chatterbox."

[If there was any moment appropriate for you to open your eyes, now would be that moment] the text read.

Imayoshi breathed audibly through this nose and then opened his right eye a crack, then pushed the lid open further with his finger. As the eyelashes fluttered, Mitobe leaned in. The blood vessels were so congested his gray irises looked almost alien in their pink fields.

[Do you have conjunctivitis?]

"I forget you're practically another parent ta your siblings sometimes. Ta be more precise, I have chronic allergic conjunctivitis. I'm allergic ta cedar pollen."

Mitobe's right eyebrow lifted as Imayoshi blinked and rubbed his watery eyes. _That looks painful._

"It looks worse than it feels… or at least that's what I'd like to say." He pulled a small white bottle of prescription drops from his pocket and tipping back his head, put one drop in each eye before letting his eyes fall solidly closed again. "I wasn't planning on traipsing through a park tonight or I woulda taken an antihistamine."

[Isn't Tokyo lousy with cedars? Why did you decide to come to high school here? Why stay for college? Osaka would be so much better] he texted.

"Why? The scholarship money was too good ta turn down. I don't go outside unless I have ta. I keep my windows closed – even when it's too hot ta do so – and I run an air purifier all the time in the dorms.

[Is it dangerous to your eyesight?]

Imayoshi shrugged. "No more than the occasional eye strain I get. Mostly, the itchin' just makes me irritable."

 _Does that mean you aren't an asshole when your eyes aren't itchy?_ Mitobe's mouth quirked up into a smile. He coughed, trying to change the strange breathing sound that passed for his laugh into something less rude.

Imayoshi looked at the back of his bare wrist. "We'd better get going, Pacifist and Bat will be wonderin' if the ghosties got us." He turned and squinted into the darkness. "Just… uh, let me follow behind ya."

 _Who pretends to be wearing a watch?_ Mitobe shook his head and sighed. Instead of taking the suggestion, he grabbed Imayoshi hand and linked their arms. _Admit it when you need help._

"Oh, I'll never live this down if Pacifist and Bat see this." Imayoshi hesitated as Mitobe tried to get them moving. "Ya know my reputation will be ruined forever, don'tcha?"

Mitobe's mouth twisted. _Really, Saint? If you were nicer to people you wouldn't have to worry about stuff like that._ After a moment of thought, he texted: [You can tell them I was scared and was holding onto you. Will that protect your ego?]

"I approve of your plan."

 _We must have just missed them,_ Mitobe thought as they cleared the low bushes and the playground came into view. The swing off to the left was still swaying back and forth as if someone has just gotten off of it. The single light that illuminated the park flickered with a pale orange glow as swarms of bugs bounced off the glass, further darkening the feeble light. Imayoshi broke away from Mitobe and moved left, while the other man moved to the right. Mitobe reached out and stopped the momentum of the first swing as he listened for the sounds of crying or barking. All he heard was the constant hum of the light bulb.

Imayoshi stepped on the bottom step of the slide, his head easily clearing the short structure. "Ya think it'll hold my weight?" he asked, his eyebrow quirking up in a mischievous smile.

Mitobe's eyebrows rose in response. _I don't think even Bat would be light enough._

"What? Are ya sayin' I'm fat?" Imayoshi asked, the mock anger lost in the chuckles that accompanied the words. Mitobe lazily joined him at the ladder and squeezed Imayoshi's upper arm. _Nope, you're all muscle._

"I don't think so, Chatterbox, but that's only because I've been addicted ta wasabi Kit Kat's since that first time I had one. It doesn't hurt that they always remind me of one of my best friends."

Mitobe reached out, smiling, and put his hand over Imayoshi's heart. _Sometimes you say the nicest things._

Imayoshi looked at Mitobe's hand touching his chest just above his sternum and sighed. As he did, he saw something slide across Mitobe's eyes, a hint of hurt, mixed with embarrassment and panic.

"Chatterbox, I… I'm sorry, but you've gotta stop touchin' me so intimately."

The odd look was replaced by confusion and then pain. _What did I do wrong?_

"It's not you. There's this little fuzzy creature that lives in my chest and every time ya touch me like that, he leaps," he explained, lifting his left shoulder. "It's not fair ta him ta encourage a lifeless hope."

Mitobe cocked his head to the left, but let his hand fall down to his side. _You can't just tell me that and then shrug it off. Take some responsibility._

Neither man moved back; the centimeters seeming like a chasm to Mitobe and not distant enough for Imayoshi as his heart beat hard against his rib cage. He turned his head and coughed, but felt the back of Mitobe's left fingers slide against the back of his, seeking the space between his. He wanted to move, to step back, to retreat, but his knees were locked and he couldn't will them to move.

With his right hand, Mitobe reached for his phone. _Fine, if you're not going to answer my vague questions, maybe you'll answer a more concrete one, Sho. I'm not letting you slide this time._

"Don't bother, I'm sure you're wonderin' what in the world I'm goin' on about," Imayoshi said, breathing hard. "I… It's not well known, but I am equally attracted ta both of the sexes. Ya see, I like ya too much ta allow that fuzzy creature ta have his way. He might starve, but our friendship is too important ta me."

A small, shy smile lit up Mitobe's face, spreading slowly across his features and up into his eyes. _You're such an idiot, Sho._

"That's not fair," Imayoshi complained as Mitobe's fingers traced up the back of Imayoshi's hand. "He's doin' summersaults, Rin. Don't do this ta me."

Mitobe grabbed the front of Imayoshi's sweeter and hauled the sly man across those few small centimeters and brought their lips together in an awkward, brutal kiss that lasted until Imayoshi stepped back for breath. They both laughed and then Imayoshi touched his lip with his free hand and it came away bloodied. "Well, that certainly was a surprise," he said, smirking. "Maybe next time, we can work on makin' that a little less violent, okay?"

Mitobe's eyes grew wide as he stared at the blood dripping down Imayoshi's chin. _I did that?_ He rifled in his pocket, gum and cellphone clattering to the dirt below, and pulled out a clean napkin embossed with the coffee shop's logo. He balled it up and held it over the cut on Imayoshi's bottom lip.

"A napkin? Really, Rin? You are such a mother hen," Imayoshi said, his voice muffled by the pressure of Mitobe's fingers through the napkin. Mitobe shrugged and looked away as the embarrassment returned.

"That's alright, I like that about ya," he whispered, but Mitobe heard it anyway. "This isn't the best idea," he continued, clearing his throat. "I don't know how many times I can tell ya I'm not a good person before ya'll finally see for yourself and believe me, Rin."

Not willing to break the tentative contact of their entwined fingers, Mitobe took the hand with the napkin away from Imayoshi's mouth and touched it again to that intimate spot on the center of his chest. _This is a good heart._

"There ain't nothin' good 'bout this heart, except for maybe the way I feel 'bout ya."

 _That's enough_ , Mitobe nodded.

"I'm a sadistic bastard and I get jealous easily…"

Mitobe pushed the napkin harder against Imayoshi's lip until the wounded man finally understood that he wanted him to hold it. His fingers lingered over Mitobe's as they traded the chore.

Mitobe patted his pockets looking for something.

"Ya phone's on the ground," Imayoshi said, gesturing with his head. Mitobe laughed soundlessly and used his toe to drag it to them, then crouched down without letting go of his hand and picked it up. Flipping it open, he composed a quick text.

[No one has ever been jealous because of me] he typed, showing Imayoshi the screen.

Imayoshi opened his eyes just a sliver to read the text, but before he closed his eyes, he made eye contact with Mitobe and held the silent man's gaze. As he closed his eyes, he smiled.

"This'll be interestin', since ya live in Osaka now and I've got school ta finish. Can ya handle a long distance relationship?"

Mitobe nodded. _You're worth it_ , he thought, the words clearly visible in his body language.

"Saint! Chatterbox! We got worried since you were taking so long," Takao called as he and Kasamatsu came crashing out of the trees. Takao tripped as he approached and only then did Mitobe let go of Imayoshi's hand to help Takao right himself.

"Well, that was a waste of time," Kasamatsu complained, coming to a stop in front of them. "Bat didn't scream or call Shin-chan."

"And Pacifist didn't pee his pants. How about you guys? Did you see any ghosts?"

"Ghosts?" Imayoshi chuckled. "None at all, but it wasn't a complete waste of a night."

"I guess not," Takao pouted. "At least you can write your paper now."

Mitobe chuckled silently but didn't correct Takao.

"What happened to your lip?" Kasamatsu asked as Imayoshi balled up the napkin and dropped it in the trash.

He looked at Mitobe for a second. Then a large shark-tooth smile spread across his face. "A kitsune bit me when I got too close."

"He tripped over a tree branch because he's so stubborn he wouldn't open his eyes and face planted, didn't he, Chatterbox?" Kasamatsu demanded.

Mitobe held up his hands and in a clear 'don't ask me' gesture, then joined the others as they laughed.

"Ya got me, Pacifist," Imayoshi shrugged. "But mine is the better story for my paper."


End file.
